This invention relates to endoscopic devices and the like for treating tissue inside a patient's body, e.g., hemostatic probes, insertable through an endoscope, for applying heat to an ulcer or other internal lesion.
A hemostatic probe can include a catheter constructed for insertion through a channel in an endoscope. The channel terminates in an opening at the distal end of the endoscope. The endoscope is first inserted into a duct in the patient's body, and is used for internal viewing, to determine the location of a lesion. The lesion may be, for example, a disruption of the mucosa of the stomach or a bleeding stomach ulcer. The catheter is then inserted through the channel in the endoscope. The catheter has a heating device on its distal end. The heating device is pressed against the location of the lesion, and heat is applied to the lesion. The combination of heat and pressure causes coagulation at the lesion.